Chemicals in the Garden

Hi, I'm Lori Else, and I love to garden. A few years ago though, I just could not win! I had bugs everywhere, and when I would try to spray to get rid of them, my plants would die from the spray! Soon, my grass and surrounding lawn also started to turn brown. I had no idea what was going on.
One day, I was ranting to my son about my gardening woes. He had just graduated from a university with a degree in environmental science asked if he could come look at my spray. It turns out it contained harmful chemicals that were spreading. It was not only killing the bugs; it was killing the plants and everything else around it.
He helped me find a safer substitute, saved my future gardens, and so I started talking to my son more about environmental topics, which provides the content for this blog.

Making Your Apartment Complex More Earth-Friendly, One Small Change At A Time

Posted on:
6 January 2015

Owning an apartment complex means that you not only have a great business opportunity, it means you have the ability to make a large impact on the environment as well. Learn how you can make your rental establishment more earth-friendly by making a few positive changes.

Encourage renters to recycle

Installing recycling bins on your apartment complex's property can make a huge difference to the environment. Your renters can recycle their used glass, plastic, and paper items with ease. You can offset the cost of renting these recycling bins by having a small portion of your renter's monthly payment go to the use of this service. When your renters know that a few dollars of their rent goes to the benefit of having recycling services on-site, they can be more encouraged to make an effort to recycle as well. To purchase commercial recycling bins, contact professional providers.

Make recycling fun for your renters by having a monthly contest to see which renter recycles the most, and reward winners in small ways:

a discount on next month's rent

a gift card to a local restaurant

a gift basket

a cash prize

Install energy-efficient cooling systems

Air conditioners that are energy-efficient not only use less electricity than traditional AC units (which saves your renters money), they can have a huge financial benefit for you as well. You may be able to write off a portion of the cost of your units every few years as a reward for making your apartment complex more green, and you can even recoup their original cost over time.

Plant a community garden

A community garden draws all your renters together as they learn how to maintain and manage a garden that you provide for them. Plant a garden in a section of your property where your renters can have easy access to vegetables that are planted every season. Not only does a community garden give your renters fresh produce that they help grow, it brings them all together in whole new ways and allows them to get to know one another and create a sense of neighborly affection for one another. Everyone benefits from a community garden, and you benefit most of all knowing that you are doing your part to make your business more earth-friendly.

Going green in your apartment complex can bring you a sense of accomplishment that even the largest profit may not fulfill. Use these small tips to make your complex more earth-friendly and you can benefit by having happier renters, possible tax write-offs, and the good feeling of knowing that your business is making a true difference.